Egypt. J. Plant Prot. Res. Inst. (2020), 3 (4): 955-963 Egyptian Journal of Plant Protection Research Institute www.ejppri.eg.net A faunistic study on Braconidae (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonoidea) from Ardebil and East Azarbayjan provinces, Northwestern Iran Najmeh, Samin1; Ahmet, Beyarslan2; Avunjikkattu, Parambil Ranjith3; Zubair, Ahmad4; Hamid Sakenin, Chelav5 and Seyed, Afshin Hosseini Boldaji6 ¹Young Researchers and Elites Club, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. ²Department of Biology, Faculty of Arts and Science, Trakya University, Edrine, Turkey. ³Insect Ecology and Ethology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Calicut, Kerala, Pin: 673635, India. 4Research Center for Advanced Materials Science / Unit of Bee Research and Honey Production / Biology Department, Faculty of Sciences and Arts, King Khalid University. 5Department of Plant Protection, Qaemshahr Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qaemshahr, Iran. 6Department of Biology, Yadegar- e- Imam Khomeini (RAH) Shahre Rey Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran. ARTICLE INFO Abstract: Article History Received:7 / 10 /2020 This paper deals with the fauna of braconid wasps Accepted: 30 / 11 /2020 (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) in Ardebil and East Azarbayjan provinces (Northwestern Iran). In total, 29 species spread over Keywords in 12 subfamilies viz., Agathidinae (Two species and two Braconidae, fauna, genera), Alysiinae (Three species and three genera), Aphidiinae parasitoid, new records, (One species), Brachistinae (One species), Braconinae (One host and Iran. species), Doryctinae (One species), Ichneutinae (Two species and two genera), Macrocentrinae (One species), Microgasterinae (12 species and six genera), Rogadinae (Four species and one genus), and Opiinae (One species) were collected and identified. Thirteen species are newly recorded from the fauna of Iran. Data of reared species with host records are also provided. Introduction larvae of Symphyta (Tobias, 1967; Braconid wasps (Hymenoptera, Shaw and Huddleston, 1991; Wharton, Braconidae) is a diverse group of 1993 and Whitfield and Wharton, parasitoids with a worldwide 1997). Braconids are speciose with distribution (Wahl and Sharkey, 1993) 21,223 described species belonging to which have an important role in 1071 genera, which represent nearly biological control programs of many 20% of the total hymenopteran crop pests (Matthews, 1974 and Shaw, diversity worldwide (Yu et al., 2016). 1995). Most of the species are primary Faunistic knowledge of the family parasites, especially of larval instars of Braconidae in of Iran is largely Coleoptera, Diptera and Lepidoptera. incomplete due to the lack of regional Other hosts include nymphs and adults studies and taxonomic complexity of of Hemiptera, Orthoptera, Psocoptera, this group in comparison with well- adults of aculeate Hymenoptera, and studied other western Palearctic 955 Samin et al., 2020 countries. Despite this lack, the fauna of Braconidae in Iran. In the present study, Iranian Braconidae has been studied totally 29 braconid species were rather well (e.g., Gadallah and Ghahari, collected, of which 13 species are 2013a, 2013b, 2015, 2016, 2017; recorded for the first time from Iran. Barahoei et al., 2014; Gadallah et al., Materials and methods 2015a, 2015b, 2016a, 2016b; Farahani The materials of the present study et al. 2016; Ghahari 2016; Beyarslan et were collected during 2011-2017 by al., 2017; Samin et al. 2018a, b; Malaise traps and sweeping net from Gadallah and Ghahari, 2019 and different regions of Ardebil and East Gadallah et al., 2019), but since Iran is Azarbayjan provinces (Northwestern a large country comprises with various Iran) (Figure, 1). Some specimens were agro-ecosystems, several new species reared in optimum conditions at are likely to be discovered in future. laboratory condition or incubator (26±3 More than eight hundred species spread ºC; 60±10 RH and 14: 10 L: D). Here over to 151 genera of 28 subfamilies of we follow Yu et al. (2016) for Braconidae are recognized in Iran nomenclature, classification and (Samin et al., 2018a, b and Yu et al., distributional data. For the following 2016). subfamilies, Microgastrinae and The purpose of this paper is to Rogadinae we followed the record the species of Braconidae of the classification of Fernandez-Triana et al. Ardebil and East Azarbayjan provinces (2020) and van Achterberg and Shaw as part of ongoing faunistic studies of (2016) respectively. Figure (1): Map of Iran with boundaries of provinces. Results and discussion Doryctinae, Ichneutinae, Totally, 29 species within 12 Macrocentrinae, Microgasterinae, subfamilies Agathidinae, Alysiinae, Rogadinae and Opiinae were collected Aphidiinae, Brachistinae, Braconinae, and identified from some regions of 956 Egypt. J. Plant Prot. Res. Inst. (2020), 3 (4): 955-963 Ardebil and East Azarbaijan provinces. Czechoslovakia, Finland, France, Thirteen species are new records for Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Iran: Aleiodes cruentus (Nees, 1834), Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Aleiodes praetor (Reinhard, 1863), Moldova, Netherlands, Norway, Atanycolus initiator (Fabricius, 1793), Poland, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Dolichogenidea gagates (Nees, 1834), Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United Dolichogenidea ultor (Reinhard, 1880), Kingdom, and former Yugoslavia. Glyptapanteles inclusus Ratzeburg, 1844, Microgaster hospes Marshall, 2. Subfamily Alysiinae Leach, 1815 1885, Microplitis tuberculatus 2.1. Dacnusa adducta (Haliday, 1839) (Bouché, 1834), Pachysema discolor Material examined: Ardebil province, (Förster, 1863), Phaenolexis senilis Namin, 1♀, 17.vi.2015. (Nees, 1812), Praon longicorne General distribution: Austria, Marshall, 1896, Proterops nigripennis Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, former Wesmael, 1835, and Psyttalia carinata Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Germany, (Thomson, 1895). The list of species is Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Korea, Poland, given below alphabetically under each Russia, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, subfamily. Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom, and former Yugoslavia. 1.Subfamily Agathidinae Haliday, 1833 2.2. Pachysema discolor (Förster, 1.1. Cremnops dessertor Linnaeus, 1863) 1758 Material examined: Ardebil province, Material examined: East Azarbayjan Aslanduz, 3♀♀, 2♂♂, ex. Phytomyza province, Azarshahr, 3♀♀, ex Cydia plantaginis Goureau, 1851 (Diptera: pomonella (Linnaeus, 1758) Agromyzidae), 14.vi.2015. (Lepidoptera Tortricidae), 8.viii.2014. General distribution: Austria, General distribution: Armenia, Azerbaijan, former Czechoslovakia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Canada, China, Croatia, former Norway, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Spain, Czechoslovakia, Finland, France, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, Germany, Hungary, India, Indonesia, and former Yugoslavia. Iran, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Notes: This species is newly reported Lithuania, Malaysia, Moldova, from Iran. Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, 2.3. Phaenolexis senilis (Nees, 1812) Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Material examined: East Azarbayjan Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, province, Absh-Ahmad, 2♂♂, Turkey, United States of America, 21.v.2016. Ukraine, United Kingdom, Vietnam, General distribution: Austria, and former Yugoslavia. Azerbaijan, Belgium, Faeroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, 1.2. Earinus elator (Fabricius, 1804) Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Material examined: East Azarbayjan Russia, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, province, Horand, 3♀♀, ex. Caloptilia Switzerland, Ukraine, United rufipennella (Hübner, 1796) Kingdom, and former Yugoslavia. (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae), Notes: This species is newly reported 24.viii.2016. from Iran. General distribution: Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Croatia, former 957 Samin et al., 2020 3. Subfamily Aphidiinae Haliday, Notes: This species is newly reported 1833 from Iran. 3.1. Praon longicorne Marshall, 1896 Material examined: Ardebil province, 6. Subfamily Doryctinae Foerster, Meshginshahr, 3♀♀, ex Macrosiphum 1863 euphorbiae (Thomas) (Hemiptera: 6.1. Spathius exarator Chao, 1978 Aphididae) on Euphorbia pulcherrima Material examined: East Azarbayjan (Euphorbiaceae), 17.vii.2013. province, Kaleybar, 4♀♀, ex. Ips General distribution: Bulgaria, Czech typographus (Linnaeus, 1758) Republic, Finland, France, Germany, (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), Hungary, India, Italy, Moldova, 11.viii.2014. Montenegro, Netherlands, Poland, General distribution: Armenia, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Tajikistan, Turkey, and United Republic, China, Croatia, former Kingdom. Czechoslovakia, Finland, France, Notes: This species is newly reported Germany, Greece, Greenland, Hungary, from Iran. Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Mongolia, Netherlands, New 4. Subfamily Brachistinae Förster, Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, 1863 Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, 4.1. Blacus (Ganychorus) tripudians Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, Haliday, 1835 United Kingdom, and former Material examined: Ardebil province, Yugoslavia. Germi, 1♀, 1♂, 18.vi.2015. General distribution: Austria, 7. Subfamily Ichneutinae Förster, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, 1863 Czech Republic, Denmark, France, 7.1. Ichneutes brevis Wesmael, 1835 Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Material examined: Ardebil province, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Germi, 2♀♀, ex Nematus fagi Zaddach, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunisia, 1876 (Hymenoptera: Tenthredinidae), United Kingdom, and former 19.vi.2015.